Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black
by rekahneko
Summary: After Remus pokes fun at Sirius for his lack of subtlety, a bet is made. Can Remus get a date without resorting to obvious methods? Slash RLSB COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

Warnings: Slash (RL/SB) – If you don't like slash, don't read it. If you don't know what slash is, don't read it (you might actually like it, get addicted, and then where will you be, I ask you?)

Disclaimer: Surprisingly enough, I don't actually own Harry Potter nor do I think I will make any money off of this. Feel free to prove me wrong and send me some cash though.

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Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

By Rekahneko

Chapter 1

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Remus Lupin was fairly adept at keeping his attention focused through many distractions. After 6 years of studying in the Gryffindor common room, he could filter out the giggles of the first and second year girls, the rowdy mock-fights of the hyper teenaged boys, and even the sudden sounds from the odd exploding snap game.

Tonight his attention was focused on a truly fascinating discussion in his Ancient Runes text pertaining to the relative magical potentials of Greek versus Latin based runes. Remus was so intent on his book that he had managed to ignore the antics of his fellow Marauders. At least he was able to ignore them until Sirius Black decided the common room was the perfect place to learn how to do a cartwheel. With the dubious advice of several other students, Sirius tried again and again to figure out how exactly one flipped feet over hands without crashing.

Remus had to admit to having a difficult time not staring each time his friend turned upside down and then fell into an improbably graceful heap. It may have had something to do with the fact that Sirius' shirt managed to expose a fair bit of skin each time, though really, he saw much more on most days; they were roommates and Sirius was hardly shy. The staring might also have had to do with the unusual and unlikely positions in which Sirius found himself on each consecutive try at the cartwheel. Unfortunately, Remus had a very fertile imagination and this was hardly the first time it had featured Sirius Black in interesting positions.

At some point, Remus told himself, he would have to do something about the whole situation. Though Sirius could be quite irritating and seemed to bring trouble with him wherever he went, his brilliant smile and fun loving nature balanced things out. Remus had to admit to himself that he was quite enamored with his dark haired roommate.

Just as he was getting back into his book, Remus caught the tail end of a conversation from across the room.

"I just think that the astronomy tower at night is a perfect, err, learning environment for experimenting on new star chart positions." There was a short pause. "Especially since this particular Dog Star loves trying out new positions."

The sound of a slap echoed across the common room.

Sirius retreated to the Marauder's corner of the common room with his sexiest pout on display for the audience his actions always seemed to garner. As far as Remus was concerned, the pout did nothing to get sympathy but produced quite another reaction altogether.

"Subtlety, thy name is Sirius Black." Remus rolled his eyes and tried unsuccessfully to hide his amused grin.

"Hey, at least I know right away if the person is interested. If they aren't, I can just move on to the next one, right?" His gaze swept the common room, possibly looking for that next person already. Sirius' eyes were met squarely by a certain redhead who glared and tossed her hair over her shoulder before returning her attention to her friends.

"Not that the knowledge of someone's disinterest seems to have made a difference for our man James… Lily can't seem to say 'no' often enough." Sirius smirked over at his best friend.

"Leave me and my precious Lily-flower out of it, you evil bastard." James' words were belied by his amused eyes and warm smile.

"Both of you could use some subtlety. I mean, really. I am shocked girls even talk to either one of you." Remus shook his head in mock wonder.

"Hey, at least I have dates," Sirius shot back at his friend, slightly annoyed.

"And you are implying what exactly?" Remus calmly raised an eyebrow and returned his friend's gaze with a challenging one.

From behind Remus, James made gestures to Sirius which most people might have interpreted to mean that Sirius should cease and desist. Sirius on the other hand, either thought they were encouraging signals or he just ignored them.

"When was the last time you had a date Remus? How about never. Ha." Sirius crossed his arms and threw himself onto the couch.

"Oh really? You think so Padfoot?" The sandy haired boy casually leaned back into his armchair, an amused smile playing around the corners of his mouth.

James sighed but was pleased that Remus seemed amused rather than offended. At this time of month, James knew the werewolf was a little more volatile than normal (though Remus would never admit to it).

"Sirius, sometimes you are so into yourself it is a tad nauseating. Do you really think Remus has no life outside the Marauders?" James chuckled at the expression on his friend's face. Obviously Sirius had missed quite a bit.

"Well who are these people you have dated then Remus?" Sirius asked, red-faced at having misjudged his friend but also still a bit disbelieving.

"I don't kiss and tell Sirius. It is called discretion, and like subtlety, it is another word you might want to learn about." Remus grinned broadly, amused.

"Bah. I have no use for discretion!"

"Indeed, I noticed that a few months back when you stood up on the table here in the common room to announce the particulars of your date with that Ravenclaw 7th year."

Sirius rolled his eyes and decided to switch tactics. "Well, I'm sure with your subtle and discrete self, it must have taken ages for anyone to notice your interest."

"Actually it is quite an effective method." He disregarded the scoff that was sent his way. "I thank you for your kind concern about my personal life though, Sirius. I have no idea what I would do without you and your helpful words." Remus nodded gravely, looking as if he was terribly impressed at such thoughtfulness while his dry tone gave away his sarcastic intentions.

"Hey!" A pillow had found its way from Sirius' couch to his friend's head. This inspired much laughter from around them.

"I know you did not just transfigure my homework into a pillow!"

"Not my fault! I ran out and you always conjure them. I needed another pillow!"

"Isn't it a good thing I practiced so hard on the spell to conjure pillows since you never do your homework? I wouldn't have anything to transfigure if I relied on your method."

"Moooooony! You are so mean to me!" Sirius yelled a war cry and launched himself at his friend, inspiring a wrestling match filled with pillows and laughter. James and Peter followed suit, every man for himself.

After tipping over the table and completely destroying the neat stacks of parchment and books, the boys finally called a truce. There was a comfortable silence as the Marauders tried their best to right all the damage done to their corner of the common room.

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As the evening wore on, first Peter, then James wandered away to do other things, leaving Sirius and Remus alone.

"So you really have dates and stuff, Remus?" Sirius was still curious about their conversation from earlier.

"Yes Sirius, I really have both dates and stuff."

Scowling a bit at being made fun of, Sirius continued digging for information. "Well who are you dating right now then?"

"No one. Though I do have someone in mind... I have yet to make a move though." He shrugged.

"Make a move? Right. Can you even do that with this subtlety technique you have been going on about?" Sirius obviously doubted the possibility.

"Oh I think it will be fine, don't you worry your pretty little head about it, Sirius."

"Tell me who it is." Sirius flashed his best, brightest, most charming smile.

"No." Remus had seen The Smile used too many times for it to be as effective as it might. He had to admit, it still looked quite nice.

"I just want to see you try out this subtlety thing, Moony."

For some reason, Remus thought this was very amusing.

"You do, eh?" Remus chuckled. "Well Sirius, I am not going to tell you who has captured my interest."

"You are just saying that because you know that my method is better."

"Subtlety works just fine, Sirius, I promise you."

"Wanna bet?" 

"And how exactly could you and I bet about this?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"If you can get your crush to ask you to date her only using your methods, then you win. If not, I win!"

"So if the person I likes asks me out, I win?"

Sirius did not seem to note the delicate rephrasing of the bet to a more gender neutral version.

"And who is going to judge all of this Sirius? I said I wasn't going to tell you. Are you going to just take my word for it when I win?"

"Tell James and he can judge."

Remus got a speculative gleam in his eyes as he considered the idea of telling James.

"Oh," Sirius added, "it has to be someone who isn't already aware that you are interested. Otherwise it is not fair. And no cheating like having someone else tell the girl or writing love letters or anything obvious like that."

"No, I agree. Nothing obvious. It still won't matter. I will win." Remus grinned.

Sirius thought Remus' grin was quite confident. Cocky, in fact. And almost, well, predatory. He shivered involuntarily. _How odd, I wonder what that was about,_ he thought to himself.

"Hmph. Let's get James." Sirius started walking toward the dormitory. "And you have to update him to tell him what has happened and how it is going. That way, he will know if your techniques are subtle or if they are more blatant and normal like how I work."

"Well I suppose I could do that." Remus smiled. This was going to be fun.


	2. Chapter 2

Warning: This is slash, don't like, don't read.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Sad, sad.

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Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

By Rekahneko

Chapter 2

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"James! Buddy! Remus and I have a favor to ask." Sirius bounded up the stairs, shouting as he went. Remus followed at a more sedate pace, smiling a bit as his friend's exuberance.

James Potter had just poked his head out of the dorm room to find out about the racket when Sirius rounded the corner of the landing and crashed into him. The two tumbled to the floor in a confusion of limbs and a few choice swear words.

Calmly stepping over them, Remus took a seat on his bed.

"Jamsie-poo! What an enthusiastic greeting! You must have missed me."

"Get off me you big oaf. I think you broke my rib. What do you want, anyhow?"

"Moony and I have a bet going and we need you to help."

"You got Remus to bet with you? You realize what this means, don't you?" James finally pushed Sirius off and stood up, straightening his clothing. "You are going to lose. He never bets unless he is sure he can win."

"Ha! Not this time, Prongs." Sirius smirked.

Remus interrupted. "James, we need you to arbitrate. You can be the impartial judge to make sure I follow the rules and to hold my winnings until it is official."

"Yeah," Sirius agreed, nodding to James. "Wait! _Your_ winnings? I don't think so, Moony. I really don't think you can pull this off."

"We will just have to see, Sirius." Remus smiled mysteriously.

"So what is this bet about?"

"Well James, Sirius here doesn't think I can get a date without being loud and obnoxious like he is."

"Hey! I am not… okay so I am loud and obnoxious. But it isn't just that. You have to avoid being straightforward. You see, Prongs, Moony is going to try and prove that his subtlety method actually works. On some poor girl who has no idea he is interested. I just can't see it happening, especially not in a month."

James looked over at Remus questioningly.

"The bet is that I will use only subtle and understated methods to go after the person in whom I am interested. They will then proceed to ask me out, and I will win."

Smiling at his friend's rewording of the bet, James nodded.

"But he isn't allowed to let the girl know he is interested! And you have to make sure of it James. He won't tell me who it is but he will tell you."

"I get it, no worries Padfoot. This sounds like it could be a lot of fun. Come on then, Moony, tell me who it is."

"Don't even try to listen in, Sirius. Go stand over there," Remus said, pointing across the room.

After a warning look at Sirius who was trying his very best to look innocent, James sat down on Remus' bed and cast a silencing spell.

Sirius watched them both carefully, wishing he had the ability to read lips. His back turned to Sirius, Remus was obviously talking to James, judging by the hand gestures that always accompanied his explanations. From the large eyes and open mouthed expression gracing James' face, Remus was giving out some surprising information. Finally James collapsed on the bed in what looked to be either a seizure or a fit of laughter.

As Remus lifted the silencing spell, he heard James manage to say through his hilarity, "Classic! Oh, Merlin! This is going to be so fun!"

"Why fun, James? What is fun about Moony's girl?"

This just set James off again, practically howling in his mirth. Remus rolled his eyes and pushed the boy so he landed with a 'thunk' on the floor. The laughter continued unabated.

Remus rummaged around in his trunk until he found the correct amount of money for the bet, waiting for James to calm down a bit before handing it over.

"I don't know about this, Moony," Sirius said, suspicious at all the laughter. "What if she already knows you like her?"

"Oh no Sirius, this particular person has no idea that Remus could possibly be interested. No idea at all. You might even call the person clueless." James did nothing to control his amusement as he assured his friend.

"Fine then, it is a bet," Sirius said after a short hesitation, handing James his money.

Carefully putting the money from both Remus and Sirius into a bright blue bag, James then waved it at them. "I will keep this little bag until one of you wins. This is going to be an entertaining month!"

James smiled and walked away, whistling a jaunty tune.

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"Hey, Remus." Sirius had cornered Remus after Charms class, hoping to get some information about the bet.

Remus hid a grin and turned to his friend, "Yes, Sirius? Something you wanted?"

"So James told me you dated guys."

"True," Remus replied, unconcerned.

"After he laughed and laughed at me, in fact. And then he pointed and laughed some more. How come you didn't tell me the bet was over a guy?" Sirius was obviously feeling a bit stupid at having made an incorrect assumption and never noticing his friend was interested in boys and not girls.

"You never asked."

"Oh. Right."

"Does it bother you, Sirius?" Remus peered intently at Sirius, carefully watching for a reaction.

"No! It's all good. I mean, you remember I kissed that Ravenclaw bloke once, right? So it isn't like I don't know what you are talking about." Sirius tried to make a confident, worldly face at Remus but he was still too busy looking surprised and a bit uncomfortable for the expression to come off quite right.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Christopher is an amazing kisser, that is for certain," Remus reminisced fondly.

Sirius blanched. "You made out with him too?"

"Made out," Remus chuckled. "I suppose you could say that." He wore an enigmatic smile that made Sirius nervous for some reason.

"Right," Sirius repeated, unsure what to say. There was a small silence before Sirius shook off his confusion and remembered why he had started the conversation.

"So Remus, tell me a bit more about your mystery man." Sirius smiled an innocent smile and used big puppy dog eyes, hoping to lull his friend into revealing the secret.

Remus rolled his eyes. As much as the expressions Sirius used were quite appreciated, he thought the other boy really ought to know by now that they weren't particularly effective, at least not on a seasoned prefect. "I suppose I could tell you a little about him as long as I stick to things that won't make it obvious who he is."

"Great!" Sirius didn't look like he thought it was great, but he really did want to find out who the unknown individual was. For some reason, Sirius felt an intense desire to figure out this mystery.

"Well, he is good looking and he knows it. That makes me a bit crazy sometimes, but I guess he doesn't let his ego get in the way too much. Most of the time it is a bit of a turn on, all that self confidence I mean."

"You can do better than some egotistical prick, Moony." Sirius scowled.

"Aww, he isn't so bad. And he is quite nice when you get to know him. I know there is a heart of gold hidden under that obnoxious exterior," he said with a fond smile.

_Remus thinks everyone is obnoxious. Compared to him, I guess everyone probably is. Stupid quiet Moony with his stupid annoying subtlety._ Wondering why he was so irritated, Sirius was beginning to regret starting this line of questioning.

"Let's see, what else?" Remus mused for a moment. "He doesn't study as much as he should but he does fine in classes."

Sirius scoffed. "No one studies as much as you think they should, Moony. I have even seen you lecture Ravenclaws on their need for better study habits!"

"That is true, Pads." Chuckling, Remus acknowledged the comment. "He is also funny. I couldn't deal with a boyfriend who didn't make me laugh. How boring would that be?"

"He makes you laugh?" Sirius looked a bit worried at the idea while Remus just smiled even more widely and nodded.

"Oh." Sirius thought for a moment. "Right. Okay, well, thanks." He sighed. So far, the last comment was the only thing that might narrow down the suspects. Sirius really didn't like to think of other people making Remus laugh though. That was his job.

He would just have to find another way to figure out who the guy was. Perhaps a list would help. Paying extra attention to who interacted with Remus would narrow down the suspects, Sirius decided. There couldn't be all that many people Remus talked to each day, could there?

_I will start Monday and follow Moony around all day. Surely I will have it figured out in no time_. Sirius smiled over at his friend, happy and confident once more. _Once I figure out who it is, I'll devise a plan and make sure it takes longer than a month for them to get together. I just know I will end up winning this bet!_


	3. Chapter 3

Warnings: Slash. If you have gotten this far though, you are probably all good with it. One would hope, at least!

Disclaimer: As of chapter 3, I still don't own Harry Potter. I will let you know though...

Notes: Who knew I would get addicted to reviews? Thanks to everyone who was kind enough to contribute. This chapter is for PaddyWaddy who agreed update if I updated too. Encouragement is a good thing!

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Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 3

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After striding confidently down the stairs from his dorm room, Sirius Black paused at the bottom of the stairs to make sure he was ready for the day.

_Okay, let's see. Parchment? Check. Quill? Check. Ink? Check! I am ready to go!_ Sirius smiled to himself as he made his way through the common room and past the portrait to breakfast. Today he was going to work hard; he was going to find out whom the bet revolved around and then Sirius would engineer himself a way to win. The plan was to take note of all the males interacting with Remus and thus narrow down the suspects until everything was obvious.

Sirius was completely ready for a productive day of following his friend, Remus Lupin, around school. School! Crap. He had forgotten his books. The black haired boy cursed silently as he ran back into the Gryffindor tower and up the stairs to the dormitory.

_I hate Mondays_, he thought to himself.

By the time Sirius finally made his way to the dining hall, Remus was already engaged in a conversation with Lily Evans and some Hufflepuff. A Hufflepuff boy, Sirius was careful to note. He grabbed a passing student with a Hufflepuff patch on his cloak. "Hey, who is that guy sitting next to Remus Lupin?"

The boy looked at him strangely before answering. "Richard Harlan. Why?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at the boy next to Remus, barely registering the question from the Hufflepuff. "No reason," he finally replied, watching Remus smile. Sirius wondered what kind of a smile it was, romantic maybe?

"Um, can I go now?" Sirius turned a bit red as he realized he was still holding on to the cloak of the unknown Hufflepuff. He let go and waved the kid away.

Pulling out his blank parchment, Sirius wrote out the first entry, _Harlan, Richard. Smarmy Hufflepuff. Reason for interacting with Remus: unknown. Notes: Find out more._

He made his way toward the Gryffindor table and plopped himself down next to his friend, stopping on the way to glare at the Hufflepuff boy who had finally stopped harassing Remus.

"Hey Moony, who was that guy you were talking to?"

"Good morning, Sirius," Remus replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, no reason," he said, innocently. "Just curious."

"When have you ever been curious this early in the morning? I am not going to give you any hints when it comes to the bet, you know."

"What makes you think my question had anything to do with our bet? Aren't I allowed to ask questions about my bestest friend ever, Messr. Remus Lupin, and what goes on in his life?" Sirius looked affronted at the very idea.

"Of course, Sirius. I am so terribly gladdened by your interest," Remus replied, snickering. "Still not going to help you by giving up any information. Now stop pouting and have some coffee."

Sirius huffed and watched Remus pour him some coffee, adding just the right amount of sugar and milk. How was it that Remus always knew him so well but he sometimes felt like Remus was a complete mystery?

After a long drink of the hot beverage, Sirius felt much better. An egg and a piece of toast, and he would be ready to begin the day.

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Sirius watched carefully from the back of the classroom as Remus bent over his cauldron, asking his Potions partner a question. From the frown on the Gryffindor boy's face, it was obvious he was concerned about some aspect of the procedure. His partner replied to whatever question Remus had posed, pointing to a spot on the textbook the two shared. Sirius observed Remus smile and nod at his lab partner. _Remus sure smiles at a lot of people._

Sirius scowled as he made an entry on his parchment. _Avery, um… I forget his first name, Elden maybe? Isaac? Something with a vowel. Evil Slytherin. Reason for interacting with Remus: It had better just be that they are Potions lab partners. Notes: Remus has always been too tolerant of Slytherins._

"Black!" Sirius just grunted, too intent on his thoughts to answer. "Black, stop staring at Lupin and pay attention. I am not going to do the whole potion myself." His own lab partner kicked him in the shin under the table. Just as Sirius turned to give the Slytherin girl a piece of his mind for the interruption, their potion began to bubble violently, splattering brown liquid all over his robes.

Yes, he definitely hated Mondays.

After class, Remus came over and helped him clean up the mess his cauldron had made. Remus also managed to get all the brown spots off of his robes. The young werewolf was brilliant with useful charms like that, and he was always around to help out. Sirius wondered what he would do without a friend like Remus.

Since he had Divination (an easy O, he thought) and Remus had Arithmancy, they usually didn't walk together. Today would be different, Sirius decided. He didn't want to miss any bits of Remus' day unless he had to, so he followed his friend down the hall away from his own class.

"Sirius, you realize your classroom is down that way, right?" Remus pointed down one of the other hallways, looking at the black haired boy, confused.

"Of course! I just thought you might want someone to chat with on the way to class. Who do you usually walk to class with anyhow?"

"Ah, now that would be telling, wouldn't it?" Remus grinned. "It is nice to have your company though, Sirius. Won't you be late, going out of your way like this?"

"I will just tell the Divination teacher that I had a vision on the way. As long as it is gory and full of ominous omens, she will be delighted. She says I have a way with Divination, but I just think I have a way with stories."

Remus laughed. "You certainly have a talent when it comes to telling tall tales. Listening to you is always fun, Padfoot."

Beaming happily, Sirius put his arm around his friend and said, "Thanks Moony!"

Just then, a group of students came around the corner, on their way to Arithmancy also, joining the two boys. Sirius never noticed the raised eyebrows of one of the girls and the whisper of the other. They gave Remus an inquiring look and he just responded with a slight smile and tiny shrug of the shoulders. There was more whispering and giggling.

Sirius leaned closer to Remus and whispered, "Girls giggle too much. What do you suppose they are on about?"

Remus chuckled and replied, "It is difficult to tell sometimes. Perhaps they are talking about you. Anyhow, here is the classroom. You had better hurry if you want to get to your own class without being too late."

"See you after class, Remus!" Sirius removed his arm from around his friend, waved and ran down the hall. The girls immediately clustered around Remus, whispering questions to which Remus just smiled mysteriously and shrugged off.

Sirius pelted down the hall to class, trying to think up a good enough 'vision' to present to the teacher. Perhaps something with a Grim. And a werewolf. Or maybe just a full moon. Smiling at the idea, he thought, _This is too easy. I almost wish I had decided to take Arithmancy._

After Divination, Sirius ran to the Arithmancy class so Remus wouldn't have time to speak to anyone without Sirius knowing. The other students looked at Sirius a bit oddly but he suspected the reason was because he was out of breath from running all the way from the other end of the castle.

"Hi Moony," he huffed out, panting from his jog through the halls.

"Hello, Sirius. Accompanying us to lunch?"

"Yeah." Sirius was too out of breath to say much more. _Maybe I can ask Lily who he talks to in Arithmancy._

After a two hallways and one set of moving stairs, Sirius managed to con Lily out of some information. She told him Remus tended to sit with two of the Ravenclaw boys, Brewster and Pangborn.

Christopher Brewster worried Sirius a bit and he wondered for a moment if the Ravenclaw was the object of the bet. He decided that, since he knew the object of Remus' affection was not aware of that interest, it probably wasn't an ex-boyfriend. _I can't believe Remus dated him. Who would want to be with that guy anyhow?_ Sirius conveniently forgot his own short-lived interest in the tall redhead.

Sirius added to the parchment again. _Brewster, Christopher. Slutty Ravenclaw. Reason interacting with Remus: probably wants to shag him. Notes: Hopefully Remus has moved on to better things since last year._

Also, he added _Pangborn, Chauncey. Friend of slutty Ravenclaw. Reason interacting with Remus: using him for his brilliant mind most likely. Notes: Not good looking enough for Remus._

After his pause in the hallway to add the two entries, Sirius had to run again to catch up to Remus. He had been chatting with some girls, Lily and two of her friends. Sirius wondered what they were talking about. He tried to listen in, but the girls just got quieter when he got closer.

"Lunchtime," Sirius cheered, delighted at finally being able to sit down next to Remus instead of race around the castle after him.

Toward the end of lunch, Sirius considered if he should include any more people to his list. _Remus talked to Dumbledore on the way in. I don't think that counts at all_. Sirius decided not to make a Dumbledore entry, shuddering at the thought.

_Of course, someone would probably have to be smart like Dumbledore to get Remus' attention_. Sirius considered this idea for a moment before shrugging.

He looked over at the Ravenclaw table, noticing that Brewster, Christopher, was busy reading some thick dusty tome. _Maybe I should study more often_. Wondering at the apparent change in direction of his thoughts, Sirius frowned.

"Why the long face?" There was a hand on his shoulder, softly shaking him from his thoughts. Remus was looking at him with a concerned expression.

"Oh, nothing."

"Here Padfoot, why don't you have the last éclair." Remus passed him a dish with a lone pastry on it, covered in chocolate and looking delicious.

"Remus J. Lupin? Giving up chocolate? Will wonders never cease? You are the best, Moony!" Sirius beamed over at his friend, good mood instantly restored, especially when he saw James laughing at Peter who had been looking wistfully at the sweet.

The four of them were a group, inseparable. Sometimes he lost sight of that, but he supposed they would always be together, no matter who was dating whom, no matter what. At least he didn't have to worry about James settling down; James would be forever after Lily who would never give in and date him. And Peter was, well, Peter. But Sirius reminded himself that Remus would never abandon him, even if the boy found his perfect match.

Sirius stuffed the last éclair quickly into his mouth, trying not to laugh as his friends made various faces at him. "Gross, Padfoot!"

"Come on, we have to get to class. Which you need more of, Sirius; I didn't need to see that." Remus winked at him, showing he didn't mean it.

Sirius made a funny face and replied, "People always say I am Sirius-ly classy." Remus groaned but laughed anyway.

The four Marauders made their way to their afternoon class, double Transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs. The friends always sat together in the back, Lily nearby but a little closer to the front along with a few of her friends. Remus sat on the side next to the Hufflepuffs which made Sirius nervous. How come Remus had all these friends in other houses?

He watched Remus all class long, trying to see if he was paying attention to one or another of the boys in the room. Sirius saw the guy from breakfast that morning. Maybe he was a new kid. Certainly Sirius had never noticed him before.

"James," he whispered. "Is that guy over there new?"

"Richard?"

"Yeah, Richard I guess."

"Um, no. You don't remember Richard? From the Hufflepuff quidditch team? You have played opposite him as chaser for two years, Padfoot."

"I guess he looks different down on the ground."

"Or maybe you are just completely oblivious to everything going on around you." James whispered, trying to stifle his laughter at his friend's expression.

"I am not!"

"Mr. Black!" Sirius jumped at the sound, almost falling from his chair. "Stop talking in class and pay attention or you will have yet another detention." McGonagall was looking sternly at him and Sirius ducked his head, pretending to concentrate on his non-existent notes. Somehow he hadn't noticed her walk up right next to him. Perhaps he was just a tiny bit oblivious to what was going on around him. Every once in a while.

Sirius sneaked a peek at Remus who was surreptitiously giving him that smile. The one that, when you saw it, made you feel like whatever idiotic thing you just did or stupid situation you just put yourself in would turn out fine. It was reassuring and warm, full of humor and tenderness. Sirius thought maybe he would do just about anything for that smile. He smiled back. Sirius supposed his Monday wasn't going so badly after all.


	4. Chapter 4

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius is following Remus around, trying to figure out who Remus likes.

Warnings: Slash. Yup. Boys.

Disclaimer: I don't even own my own couch.

Notes: Thanks much to my Beta, Sibbielee113, who lets me ramble on (and on) about fan fiction and is kind enough to nod and smile even when she would rather be elsewhere.

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Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 4

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After class, all four boys walked together toward Gryffindor Tower. A group of girls whispered and giggled as the slowed their pace to match the four boys. One girl, short with curly blond hair, edged closer to Sirius and pulled on his robe, getting his attention.

"Sirius, don't forget you promised to meet me in a little while…" The girl gave Sirius a seductive glance.

"I did?" She pouted as the glance didn't seem to have any effect whatsoever.

"Yes, you did. Remember?"

"Nope." Sirius shrugged, unconcerned.

The girl frowned. "You are still coming to the astronomy tower with me though, right?"

"Err, well, I am really busy right now and everything."

"What are you doing that is so important?"

Sirius looked at Remus for help. Remus just raised an eyebrow.

"There is this really important thing that Remus is going to help me on."

"What kind of thing?"

"Um, an important thing?"

Remus finally came to his rescue. "Sirius needs help with his Defense essay."

"Oh," the girl said, disappointed. "Well, I will see you some other time, then."

"Sure," muttered Sirius, obviously relieved.

"Girls are so annoying sometimes," he whispered to Remus as they walked away.

Remus replied, "I couldn't agree more," and grinned.

"Really clingy and everything. Never leave you alone, never time to yourself."

"Follow you around all day, do they?" Remus seemed amused.

"Exactly!" Sirius beamed brightly, glad his friend understood. "So what are we doing next today, Remus?"

Remus laughed and pulled Sirius toward the Gryffindor portrait hole.

ooooooooooooooo

Sirius was playing chess with James. He had positioned himself near enough to Remus so that he could watch went on around the blond werewolf. Noticing Sirius taking notes now and again as different students approached Remus, James barely managed to hold in his laughter. Sirius wondered why James and Remus were having so much fun with the bet. Probably, he would figure it out when he discovered who Remus liked.

James had his king cornered and his queen in a difficult spot. "Run away, run away!" she yelled. Chess pieces were so annoying sometimes. This was the last time he was playing with someone else's chess set, he promised himself. Focusing entirely on the chessboard and thinking there must be some way out of his mess, Sirius finally decided to call for assistance.

"Remus? Come help me!"

"He isn't here anymore, Padfoot; you will just have to die on your own." James did his best impression of diabolical laughter, "Heheheh!"

"That was pathetic, Potter. It should be more of a Muahaha… Wait! What do you mean Remus isn't here anymore? Where did he go?" Sirius stood up and looked around the common room. Sure enough, Remus had vacated his position at the desk in the corner of the room.

"Moony went to the library for a study group. He always goes on Monday afternoons while I beat you in chess, Sirius."

"Oh, right." Sirius thought for a moment. "Good game, James. See ya around!" Sirius knocked over his king in defeat, grabbed his school bag and ran for the exit to the common room.

James just stared after him, flabbergasted. Sirius never gave up in the middle of a chess game, even when it was obvious he was going to lose. Perhaps Remus was going to win this bet after all.

ooooooooooooooo

"Hi, Remus."

There was a strange silence as the people around Remus stopped their current conversation and looked up, staring at Sirius. _Why were they gawking at me? Is my hair messed up or something?_ Sirius patted his hair, trying to reassure himself that it was as smooth and shiny as usual.

"Hello Sirius. Fancy seeing you here in the library." Remus looked as if he were trying not to laugh. He did that a lot when Sirius was around.

"Well I thought perhaps I would see what you were up to. And maybe meet some of your friends."

"Of course. Meeting my friends." Remus sent a gaze heavenward as if to ask for patience.

Sirius pouted in what he considered to be a very beguiling way. "You don't want my company?"

"Don't you think you will get a little bored? We are studying Ancient Runes and since you don't take that class…"

"I would never get bored with you around," Sirius stated firmly.

"Well then, have a seat." An affectionate smile graced Remus' face as the rest of the study group looked with fascination back and forth between the two boys.

Within three minutes, Sirius was certain he was more bored than he had ever been in his entire life. He wished he had the kind of infinite patience Remus seemed to have, but instead he was stuck with lots of energy and a lack of ability to concentrate.

Sirius decided to investigate some of the members of the study group. He started up a conversation with the oddly dressed Runes student next to him. After thoroughly distracting the boy from his homework and getting him off onto several tangents, Sirius made some notes on his parchment.

_Duke, Kirley. Poser Hufflepuff. Reason for interacting with Remus: Runes study group. Notes: Apparently plays guitar and thinks he will be a famous rock star someday. This guy is no Stubby Boardman, that is for sure. Find out if Remus likes modern music._

Next, he switched his focus to the very nervous looking fellow across the table. After what seemed like an eternity of trying to get the boy to chat about himself, his life, or something, anything interesting, Sirius gave up.

_Derwent, Basil. Dull Hufflepuff. Reason for interacting with Remus: Runes study group. Notes: Dead boring, serious lack of personality._ Sirius chuckled to himself, considering a revision of the notes to include yet another pun on his name.

"What are you working on there, Sirius?" Remus was looking at him inquisitively, obviously wondering what was so funny.

"Oh nothing, just, you know, some stuff." He hid his parchment from view.

"Sounds exciting," Remus said blandly, eyes dancing with amusement.

Sirius looked suspiciously at Remus, wondering if he was teased. From the other boy's angelic, innocent expression, he figured it was likely. "Hmph."

ooooooooooooooo

"Wake up, Sirius." There was a soft voice in his ear and a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Huh?" Sirius looked around him blearily. When did the common room get so many books?

"The study group is over. Dinner time." Looking up at Remus, Sirius finally figured out where he was. He was still in the library of all places. And thank Merlin the stupid study group had finally ended. Why people put themselves through this sort of torture, he had no idea.

Remus helped him gather all his things and together they headed to the great hall.

On the way there, Sirius related the chess match to Remus, complaining about having to use someone else's pieces instead of his own. "They didn't like me at all! One knight kept trying to poke me with his sword every time my hands came anywhere nearby. And I couldn't quite hear what the pawns were whispering about, but I bet it wasn't any good. The queen though, she was the worst!"

He went into a detailed rendition of the queen's antics, including an exaggerated imitation of the queen trying to suggest a retreat. "Run away, run awaaaaaaay!" Sirius squealed in a high pitched voice and ran backwards down the hallway, waving his arms frantically. Even with the racket he was making, not everyone heard him coming and he ended up in a heap on the floor with a few first years.

"Oh Sirius, you really crack me up sometimes," Remus said through his chuckles. He helped his friend up off the floor, apologizing to the first years, eyes brimming with humor.

Sirius loved making Remus laugh. Though the werewolf smiled quite often, it was much rarer for him to laugh. Sirius personally thought the boy needed more laughter in his life. Remus was very careful to hide the heavy burden that went along with his lycanthropy but Sirius knew it was there and saw it reflected in Remus' eyes daily. Removing those shadows, even for a moment, made all his silly antics seem worthwhile.

ooooooooooooooo

"Remus, are you ready to go to the prefect meeting?"

"Sure Lily, let me just get my bag." While Remus made sure he had everything he needed, James puffed out his chest and made eyes at Lily. She ignored him, or at least pretended to. Sometimes James was a bit difficult to ignore.

"Remus?"

"No Sirius, you can't come to the prefect meeting. Sorry."

"How did you know I was going to ask?" Sirius looked surprised. "I mean, not that you were right or anything."

"Of course not." Remus rolled his eyes heavenward. "I will be back later. Don't get into too much trouble while I am gone, you three."

Sirius rolled his eyes back at his friend. "Keep out of trouble? That will be the day!"

"You guys are always rolling your eyes at each other. Some day your eyes are going to roll right out of your head!"

Remus looked at the pudgy blond strangely. "Peter, you are a bit odd sometimes, you know?"

James added, "I would roll my eyes at what you said, Pete, but I am afraid they will fall out now." Peter threw a balled up piece of paper at James who caught it neatly, tossing it into the trash.

Smiling, Remus waved at his friends and followed Lily out of the common room.

Silence reigned over the Marauders' corner while Sirius and James watched the two prefects leave for their meeting and Peter went back to his Herbology homework.

"I think she likes me, Padfoot. Hasn't she been so much nicer this year?"

"Prongs, she hexed you for talking to her just last week." Even knowing it wouldn't help, Sirius felt it was his duty to warn his friend

"Lily is just biding her time. Waiting for the right moment." James paused and seemed to be thinking carefully.

"Actually Padfoot," he continued, looking at Sirius intently, "it might just be that she has liked me all along but hasn't quite realized it yet. Apparently that happens sometimes."

Sirius just looked at James sadly. "Of course, mate, of course. Lily will come around any time now." Sirius supposed there wasn't much he could do about his delusional roommate. "So anyhow, back to me and my issues. How many people go to these prefect meetings with Remus and Lily?"

Grinning, James replied, "All the prefects go. There is a boy and a girl prefect from each house, 5th, 6th and 7th year. And two of those are the head girl and boy. I bet Lily will be head girl next year."

"That makes…" Sirius counted carefully in his head, "four 5th year boys, three other 6th year boys, and four 7th year boys. Eleven total. Wow, this will really be a long list."

"What list?"

"Err, nothing. Go away."

Sirius started writing hunched over his parchment so James couldn't see.

_Malfoy, Lucius. My-Soon-To-Be-Cousin-in-Law Seventh year Slytherin. Reason for interacting with Remus: Prefect Meeting. Notes: There is absolutely no way Lucius could be the one for Remus. Besides the fact that he is engaged to my cousin Cissa, he is always rude to everyone, even Remus. Though he is awfully good looking in a snobby, feminine sort of way… Nah. I am sure Remus has better standards. I hope._

_Dearborn, Caradoc. Seventh year Gryffindor. Reason for interacting with Remus: Prefect Meeting. Notes: Pretty nice for an old guy. Remus should really date someone his own age though._

_Gudgeon, Davey. Seventh year Hufflepuff. Reason for interacting with Remus: Prefect Meeting. Notes: This year he is Head Boy which might impress Remus enough to overlook his awful hair. Have you even seen such a mess? I mean, other than on James._

_Oh Merlin, what if Remus fancies James? Wait, no. He is the judge, it can't be him. Thank goodness._ Sirius let out a sigh of relief after his momentary bout of panic.

Sirius wondered who the Ravenclaw seventh year male prefect was.

"Let's see," he mumbled to himself. "Who else?"

"Stupid Christopher is also a prefect this year." Sirius added a few words to his earlier notes.

_Aubrey, Bertram. Sixth Year Hufflepuff. Reason for interacting with Remus: Prefect Meeting. Notes: I only know his name, nothing else. Find out more!_

Sirius realized he had no idea who the sixth year Slytherin prefect was or who any of the fifth year prefects were. At least not the boys anyhow. He thought perhaps he should ask James but he wanted to keep the list a secret for the moment. Maybe he would work on his Potions assignment for a while instead.

ooooooooooooooo

Sirius was just finishing up his homework when Remus, Lily and the other Gryffindor prefects arrived back from their meeting. Remus was deep in a conversation with Lily and Caradoc Dearborn, hands gesturing as he explained his point of view.

Sirius walked over to them, interrupting. "Moony! I need your help with Charms!" He made a dramatic gesture, one fist over his heart, and sank to his knees. "Please, please help me! I am lost without your guidance!" Placing the back of his hand to his forehead, he continued, "Alas, I cannot fathom the complexity of the assignment and it saps at my will to live. My life is on the line!"

His antics had Remus and Caradoc in fits of laughter, and even Lily was unsuccessful in containing her amusement.

Sirius dropped all the way to the ground, faking a dead faint at his Charms woes.

"Okay, okay, Sirius. I will help." Remus turned to the other prefects, waved his fingers, and dragged his friend off to the corner of the common room.

"Now why do you _really_ want to talk to me? You never have problems in Charms."

"When you were at your meeting, I was thinking. You don't mind that I followed you around all day, do you Moony?" Sirius had realized that he might have annoyed his classmate with the strange behavior.

"It was fun to have you hanging about, Padfoot. Any time you want to follow me around, you are very welcome." Remus smiled at Sirius.

"Good because I still haven't figured out who it is, even after a whole day."

"It might take you more than one day, Padfoot. I told you I was subtle, didn't I?" Remus leaned over and ruffled the black hair of his friend.

"Not the hair!" Sirius made a big production of trying to fix his hair and lamenting over its early demise, hoping to be rewarded with more laughter. He was, and life was good.

ooooooooooooooo

It was the end of the day and Sirius had spent the whole time following Remus Lupin around Hogwarts. And he was tired. Who knew that Remus had such a full schedule? He always assumed that while he and James were goofing off or planning future chaos, Remus was alone studying in the library or drinking tea or something. _Perhaps I never noticed because Remus always seems to be around when I really need him,_ Sirius mused.

Sirius read over his notes and realized that all the people on the list were suspects. He decided they could all be after Remus, even the ones with girlfriends, because of course, who wouldn't want to be with someone as wonderful as Remus, given the opportunity?

The notes had gotten more and more extensive as the day wore on. Toward the evening, as he got bored with homework, Sirius had added quite a number of comments to each entry. He remarked on each person and if he thought Remus would date them, and more importantly, if he thought they were good enough for Remus. So far, he hadn't found anyone that he thought Remus should be seeing.

"This is too hard, I am never going to figure it out!" 


	5. Chapter 5

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius is trying to figure out who Remus likes while Remus is smiling mysteriously.

Warnings: Slash. Because it is cute, that is why.

Disclaimer: I am hoping to find ownership of Harry Potter et al up for auction on Ebay, but I haven't seen it there yet. I would bid all the money in my bank account! Of course, that and a dollar wouldn't even get me a latte...

Notes: Thanks again to my Beta, Sibbielee113, PaddyWaddy, and to all my brilliantly wonderful reviewers.

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Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 5

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On their way to History of Magic class, Sirius and Remus were walking along the corridor, lagging a bit behind their friends.

"So how goes the bet, Moony?" Sirius tried his best to look nonchalant about the question.

"I am fairly certain he was staring at me in the hall between classes yesterday, Padfoot."

"Which classes?"

"Oh, no. I don't think I will be telling you that. I wouldn't want to give it away or anything…"

Looking suspiciously at the boy next to him, Sirius asked, "It's that Caradoc guy, isn't it?"

"Caradoc? You think so?" Remus chuckled.

"Is that a 'yes, I like Caradoc' sort of laugh or a 'you are way off' kind of laugh?"

Grinning, Remus just shrugged.

"He is way too old for you anyhow."

"Caradoc is only one year above us, Sirius."

"Still, you should probably stick to someone in our year."

"Thanks for the advice. I will certainly take it under advisement." Remus' eyes crinkled up in amusement while Sirius huffed.

ooooooooooooooo

Once everyone had settled into their usual seats and class had begun, Sirius pulled out his trusty list of potential Remus boyfriends. He scanned it carefully, trying to decide if he thought there was a better match for Remus than Caradoc. Head Boy was impressive and all, but generally prefects were boring, rule bound, and completely uninteresting. Of course, Remus wasn't at all a bore, even if he was a prefect. Sirius tried not to think that perhaps Caradoc wasn't so boring either. He updated his entry.

_Dearborn, Caradoc. Seventh year Gryffindor. Reason for interacting with Remus: Prefect Meeting, talking about prefect-type issues. Notes: Pretty nice for an old guy. Remus should really date someone his own age though._ _Probably too boring and uptight for someone like Remus. He needs a person who can make his life more interesting, not less. _

Sirius decided to consider of all the traits he thought Remus would want in a potential date. This would narrow down his list of students. He thought carefully.

Remus would certainly want someone who was good looking and had even mentioned it (and that the boy had a large ego) when describing the person. After all, Remus himself was attractive in a reserved, elegant way. Sirius wrote down, _good-looking_.

Probably Remus would only date someone who was smart. Sirius wasn't sure if the person needed to be book smart or just generally intelligent. Remus didn't seem to mind Sirius and James and their disinterest in studying too much, but he did lecture them on occasion about it. Sirius added, _smart, _deciding to leave out _studious_, just in case.

What else might Remus want in a boyfriend? When describing the guy, he had said 'funny,' but this was Remus who was kind enough to laugh at all of Sirius' jokes (even the horrible Sirius/serious puns). Perhaps he thought a lot of things were funny or he was just too nice not to smile politely. Sirius included _amusing_ on his list.

Personality wise, Sirius had no idea what kind of person would interest his friend. _Kind, caring, loyal_ were all important he supposed, but what else?

A hand on his shoulder brought him out of his thoughts abruptly. "Come on, Sirius, class is over." Remus was smiling down at him, books and parchment together, ready to go.

Sirius wondered randomly if writing for a bit longer would make Remus leave the warm hand where it was. Maybe he was cold or something.

"Why don't we go outside and sit in the sunshine for a while, Moony?"

"All right, that sounds nice. I catch James and Peter and tell them to meet us there."

James and Peter hadn't gotten too far when Remus found them and suggested a nice sunbath. The boys meandered through the castle and proceeded outside, chatting about nothing in particular. Eventually they settled themselves underneath a favorite tree overlooking the lake.

James dangled his feet into the water, engaging Peter in a lively discussion of Quidditch tactics while Remus pulled out a book and Sirius sprawled out in the sunshine.

After closing his eyes and soaking up some sun for a while, Sirius recalled his earlier thoughts on who might be a good match for his friend. He pulled out his notes from earlier and studied them intently.

_Let's see. Who on the list is good-looking, smart, amusing, kind, caring, and loyal?_

"Padfoot!" A loud, obnoxious sort of voice interrupted his thoughts. He knew without looking up that it was James. "Don't you have detention with Slughorn right now?"

"Crap!" Sirius stuffed the paper in his back pocket and ran back towards the castle.

ooooooooooooooo

"Definitely Merlin," Peter said enthusiastically. "That would be so cool! Imagine the tricks he could teach me!"

"Shakespeare. Or perhaps Tolstoy. Then again, maybe I am thinking too recent. Sophocles? We are ignoring language barriers of course."

"Gah, Remus. That is so… You. Well, I would invite Lily of course. In this 'what if,' the person would have to accept, right?"

"What are you guys talking about?" Sirius had just entered the common room, returning from detention, and had come upon his friends having an odd conversation.

"We got a bit bored, so we're all answering the same question: If you could invite anyone, dead or alive, to dinner, who would you invite?"

"Oh! Well, I would invite someone alive of course. I'm not sure I would want to eat with dead people around. Pretty gross, don't you think?" Sirius wore his best innocent face.

Remus looked at him for a moment before bursting into nearly hysterical laughter. He was joined by the other two Marauders and then finally Sirius himself.

After a short scuffle with Peter, room was made for Sirius on the couch. The four eventually calmed down and made themselves comfortable.

"Now that you are finally back, Pads, I wanted to run through the prank we were talking about for next week."

"James, you always sound so businesslike when discussing Marauder issues." Remus smiled. "I approve!"

Making a face at Remus, James continued. "If we set off the spell between the Charms classroom and the Great Hall right before lunch, it will be too busy for people to notice it was us. On the other hand, it will be busy enough that we might not hit the intended targets."

"Hmm," Remus said thoughtfully. "Let me consider the problem for a moment."

As he waited for his classmate to evaluate the relative merits and issues with their prank, Sirius gazed at the boy intently, watching how the brow furrowed in concentration and the eyes became unfocused. Then for some reason, his eyes traveled across Remus' face to where a finger was gently tapping on a lower lip. Remus always did this when thinking analytically and Sirius had seen it a million times. This time though, Sirius couldn't seem to take his eyes off of Remus' mouth.

Remus was saying something or other but Sirius couldn't seem to listen, he could only watch as the perfectly shaped mouth moved. _Since when did Moony have such a nice mouth and why is it so fascinating anyhow?_

"Padfoot?" James tried to get his friend's attention. "I asked you what you thought about it. Are you paying any attention?"

"Yeah," he replied, "the hallway is fine with me." Sirius tried not to blush as he realized he had been staring at his classmate's lips. He decided to look carefully at the notes and hope no one noticed.

Sirius completely missed the small smile that graced Remus' face.

ooooooooooooooo

It was getting late and the fire in the common room had dimmed a bit. Most of the younger years had already gone to sleep while the older ones were only awake if they were busy studying.

Remus glanced over at Sirius, noting he was writing on the same parchment he had been working on earlier. "How is the list going, Padfoot?"

"Fine," Sirius replied, not paying much attention, adding a comment here and there. He looked up the Remus, his eyes widened, and he immediately added, "I mean, what list?"

Remus laughed.

Sirius pouted a bit but was secretly pleased that Remus found it funny. He really did enjoy making the boy laugh, even when he didn't mean to. It was frustrating to him somehow that someone else made Remus laugh too. Sirius was pretty sure he was much better at it than anyone else though, even if this mysterious guy amused Remus sometimes.

He wondered at the frustration he felt over the bet. The whole point of a wager (other than winning and making some money of course) was to have fun. Sirius enjoyed all the plotting and he also had to admit to a curiosity urging him to learn more about his good friend. Remus was usually so close-mouthed when it came to his personal life, which before the bet, Sirius had assumed only included friends and family. This new side of Remus fascinated Sirius, and their bet was a perfect opportunity for him to see more of it. Of course, it helped that Sirius was confident he would win. It wasn't as if he thought Remus couldn't get a date, he just didn't think the boy could do it without being straightforward in such a short time span.

ooooooooooooooo

Remus was asleep on his books, again. The studious prefect liked to stay up and study in the common room, convinced he could get just a bit more work done, even when he could barely prop his eyes open. Sirius smiled fondly as he gazed at the snoozing werewolf.

"Time for bed, Remus."

"Mmm," was the only answer.

The black haired boy pried the books away from his sleeping roommate, marked the pages, and stacked them carefully next to the armchair.

"Come on, let's get upstairs."

"I'll jus' sleep here t'night," the werewolf mumbled sleepily without opening his eyes.

With a wry smile, Sirius looked down at the figure on the chair. When he fell asleep in the common room, Remus always decided that staying there was easier than waking up and walking up the short flight of stairs to their dorm room. Each time this happened, mostly close to the full moon, Sirius always had the same response.

"Come on, then." He put one arm under the blonde's back and one under his knees and lifted.

Wondering if Remus would ever get a good night's sleep if it weren't for him, Sirius carried the boy across the room and to the staircase. "A little help wouldn't be amiss, Moony."

Eyes still closed, Remus wrapped an arm loosely around his friend's shoulders.

Sirius sighed, making a face even though the other boy wouldn't see him. He smiled too though, enjoying the measure of trust the werewolf had given him by letting himself get lugged around. Remus acted so strong and self-reliant but Sirius knew it wasn't always true.

Finally making it upstairs with his sleeping roommate, Sirius was able unload his burden onto one of the big, comfortable beds. Sighing and burrowing into the pillow, Remus mumbled something that might or might not have been a thank you.

Sirius smiled down at Remus. "Good night, Moony," he whispered.


	6. Chapter 6

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius has been working on figuring out who the bet revolves around by spending much more time with Remus than usual.

Warnings: Slash. Good And Good For You! Nutritious And Delicious!

Disclaimer: Still don't own it…

Notes: This chapter is for JuliaKerns5 who is able to produce such nice Remus/Sirius stories in a much more timely fashion than I do…

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Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 6

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"…Remus and Sirius. Isn't it just the cutest?"

It was lunchtime and snippets of conversation made their way through the air. As he often did when he was bored, Peter had been listening in on other students' gossip. "I heard your name, Sirius. And Remus too. What do you think they are talking about?" Peter glanced with interest at the giggling Hufflepuff girls sitting at the nearby table.

Sirius just rolled his eyes and leaned over to grab some more mashed potatoes.

"They might be discussing the rumor going around that he and Remus are dating," interjected James from the other side of the platters of food.

"There is a rumor that Moony and I are together?" Sirius perked up and grinned at his luck. "That might help me win the bet! Have you heard about this, Moony?"

"I have dismissed the whole topic when asked. You don't mind having misinformation spread about you?" Remus looked at Sirius curiously, wondering at the reaction.

"There are always rumors about me. It is just one of those difficulties that goes along with being the one and only Sirius Black." He shrugged carelessly and turned his attention back to his mashed potatoes.

"Well, I am glad you aren't bothered by it. The whole thing is a bit odd for me though; rarely am I the object of so much gossip."

"Don't stress about it, Moony. The key to the dealing with a situation like this is to pay no attention whatsoever. Or, if you are like me, cater to the masses." Sirius proceeded to put an arm around Remus and lean closer while smiling over at the giggling Hufflepuff girls.

James raised an eyebrow at Remus who just smiled helplessly back.

"I sincerely hope your reaction doesn't hurt my chances of winning the bet," Remus commented innocently, looking in James' direction. James tried not to laugh.

"You don't sound too worried, Moony. Hey! I can just look around and see who is really jealous. This is a great way for me to find out…" He peered carefully around the Great Hall, arm still around Remus.

"Now Padfoot, maybe you shouldn't do that. It doesn't sound very fair," said James, laughing.

"Hmph. Whose side are you on anyhow, Prongs?"

For once, Remus agreed completely. Sirius draping himself all over Remus didn't seem to be a bad thing at all to the werewolf. In retaliation, he sent a look over to James who just grinned like a maniac and waved a fork full of chicken at him. As usual, the werewolf's scary prefect look, which worked wonders on first years, didn't make much of an impression when it came to his friends (unless you counted amusement of course).

ooooooooooooooo

As the Charms professor explained one of the simpler spells they were working on, for the third time, Remus' attention wandered away from his notes and back to where it had been earlier in the lesson. He was busy observing Sirius. His classmate was obviously having a wonderful time passing notes with James and he gestured grandly every time the tiny professor turned back to the blackboard. A nearby girl was looking at Sirius as if he was a piece of chocolate cake, but as usual, the smoldering looks weren't noticed. The boy was wonderfully oblivious sometimes. Either that, or he just didn't care too much.

One of the reasons Remus decided that this bet was a fairly reasonable way to change things between the two of them was because of that very attitude. The easiest way to get Sirius' attention would have been to push a physical relationship but Remus didn't want to force himself onto Sirius when it might not be reciprocated. He also didn't want a relationship solely based on physical attraction, so he even if he had been certain of his friend's interest, he wasn't going to just corner Sirius and snog him breathless (at least not right away). When it came to Sirius, Remus wouldn't settle for a short fling.

_Worst case scenario_, Remus thought, _Sirius doesn't end up feeling the same as me. In that case, we will still friends be without the awkwardness that might have happened, assuming James keeps his promise to stay quiet if it doesn't work out._

_Sometimes I wonder… We are so different. I am caution personified and he jumps into things wholeheartedly_.

Smiling to himself at the faces Sirius was currently making behind the teacher's back, he decided Sirius was probably good for him. Because of the current situation, Sirius was hopefully going to have to think about things and come to his own conclusions without being rushed or cornered into anything.

_What a wonderful piece of luck that Sirius suggested the bet. It is just the trick to make Sirius reconsider his previous opinions,_ Remus thought happily, turning back to his notes before he got too behind.

ooooooooooooooo

"Moony, stop reading and pay attention to me." Sirius had been looming over his studious friend for a short time but the boy was so engrossed in his book he hadn't noticed.

"Hmm," was the only reply from the figured curled up in the overstuffed armchair.

"Remus, you know there is more to life than studying and reading books."

"I have heard that rumor too, Sirius. Nothing but a load of drivel." Remus still hadn't looked up from his book.

"Drivel? Who uses that word?"

"Me, apparently."

"Yet another sign of too much reading."

"Thanks for your continued concern, Sirius. You are always there for me with the anti-reading comments. What have I done to deserve such a dedicated friend?" Remus was finally ignoring his book in favor of grinning up at his friend.

"You look upside down from here," Sirius commented, hanging even farther over the back of the chair, looking down as Remus tilted his head back to look up.

Remus suddenly yanked on the black-haired boy's arm, causing him to lose his balance and fall.

"Oops!" Remus sent a grin to the sprawled figure on the floor. "Are you entertained yet? Enough attention for you?"

"Never!" Sirius declared emphatically from the ground.

Remus laughed as he commented, "Having trouble concentrating again, Pads?"

"Just a bit restless I guess. Wanna go for a kitchen raid?"

"I suppose I could do that. Let me just put my things away. We should have just enough time to get back before curfew if we don't dawdle."

"Dawdle, drivel… Where do you get these words, Moony?"

"I spend hours every week looking them up just so that I can irritate you. Come on, let's go."

"Ha! I knew it," Sirius replied as they headed out the door. "Your life revolves around me, doesn't it?"

"Everyone's life revolves around you. You are the center of the universe and all," Remus commented dryly.

"I knew you would eventually come 'round to my point of view on life, Moony."

"Shall we talk about something else before your head gets too big to fit through the kitchen passageway?"

"Perhaps we can talk about my astounding brilliance or my amazing good looks then."

"Were you dropped a lot as a child, Sirius?"

"Nah," he said, shaking his head firmly. "I'm just like this because insanity runs in my family."

Remus laughed as they finally approached the kitchen.

"So what are you in the mood for? I wonder if they have any chocolate."

Sirius led the way through the secret passage. "Pelly! My favorite house elf, ever! Can you get us some snacks? Maybe something chocolate?"

The two boys found a nice spot in the back corner of the kitchen and sat down. Various house elves surrounded them, offering suggestions, until they had a veritable feast laid out before them.

Unsurprised that Remus had immediately started in on the one chocolate dish, Sirius sampled the other various delicacies in front of him.

"Blackberry tarts and ice cream, crackers and baked brie, macadamia nut cookies, and crab cakes! This must be one of the best spreads ever, Moony."

"And chocolate pudding. You can't forget the most important snack of all, Padfoot."

They both grinned at the same time. Sirius noticed that Remus' hair shone in the flickering light of the fire. The reflected light made his hair seem more red than its usual honey blond.

"Moony, your hair is darker than it used to be," he said suddenly.

"When I was a child, I was as fair haired as a Malfoy," Remus replied conversationally between bites of pudding. "I expect my hair will be a nice boring shade of brown when I get to my father's age. With grey in it, of course." He grimaced, thinking of the strands of grey already appearing.

"I like the grey. It makes you look, well, I dunno. Interesting."

"Riiight." Remus sent him a skeptical glance before turning back to his pudding.

"No really. It looks good."

Remus looked at him again, tipping his head to the side with a curious expression.

"Well it does," Sirius mumbled, suddenly feeling awkward at his pronouncement.

"Thank you," the werewolf said with a soft smile.

ooooooooooooooo

A rare silence had enveloped the Gryffindor common room as the few older students still awake each focused on school work. All of them were focused, that is, except one Sirius Black. He had been feeling on edge and off center all day, not able to concentrate. This wasn't exactly a new experience for him as he tended to be a bit hyper and had a decidedly short attention span, but this time there was an unusual reason behind his inability to focus.

During the past week, Sirius had spent much of his attention centered on his good friend, Remus. The bet they made had created a situation where the popular boy ended up not only shadowing his quieter friend but also carefully considering every aspect of his friend's character. He supposed that contributed to his current predicament.

Sirius always knew Remus was good looking, in a purely esthetic way, but now it seemed so much more immediate. Sometime during their trek to and from the kitchens, Sirius had finally come to the realization that he was actually just a little bit attracted to his werewolf friend.

_How awkward_, Sirius thought. He sighed heavily, tossed his quill down and put his head in his hands.

"You look tense, Pads. Is the Charms essay giving you trouble?"

Sirius thought it was much more likely that Remus and the bet were what made him tense but he didn't want to say that. He just shrugged instead.

"Here, let me rub your shoulders. It always helps me when I get stressed out."

Without waiting for an answer, Remus put his hands on Sirius' shoulders and began to knead the tense muscles there through the light fabric of the shirt.

"Thanks, Moony." The fingers felt like heaven as they firmly pushed into all the right spots. Sirius closed his eyes for a moment in pleasure.

"Oh wow, Remus. That feels really good." The hands continued their work, moving up to the top of the spine. Thumbs gently massaged while fingers twined through long black hair and the stress melted away.

"I have been told I am very good with my hands," said Remus conversationally, somehow managing to get his fingers under his classmate's collar for better contact with the muscles there. Sirius felt his skin warm as he reveled in the touch.

"Good with your hands. Right." Inappropriate images of Remus' hands, and what else they might be good for, assaulted Sirius' brain.

Sirius coughed. "Well, thank you," he managed to say, trying to think of something else instead.

"That is what friends are for, Sirius," Remus said nonchalantly as he continued working the shoulder muscles.

The whole time, James had been across the table, pretending to read. He finally looked up over his book. Remus winked at James from behind Sirius, sporting a wolfish grin that Sirius could not see. James tried not to laugh and wondered how on earth Sirius was so blind.

ooooooooooooooo

It was late at night and Sirius was still awake, tossing and turning. He had just realized that he was physically attracted to his very male friend and he was having a bit of a difficult time trying to figure out what it all meant.

_It is all the fault of that stupid bet_. He flipped from his stomach to his side, rearranging the pillow and blankets for what felt like the millionth time that night.

A random thought made him suddenly sit upright. _Oh Merlin, what if the bet is about me? What if Remus likes me?_

_Wouldn't I have noticed though? Even with the subtlety thing, how could one of my best friends fancy me and I not notice? It would still be pretty obvious, wouldn't it? _

Sirius considered the situation. _It has always been easy for me to tell. The girls who like me giggle and stare at me all their time and do stuff like lick their lips and send me what they probably think are provocative looks. Heck, sometimes they just sit themselves in my lap without asking. A little annoying but always easy to figure out._

Thinking back, Sirius realized that Remus hadn't done any of the things he normally associated with girls who liked him. Of course, Remus wasn't a girl, but he didn't really have much else to go on. In fact, as far as he could tell, Remus hadn't been acting differently towards him recently at all. He was satisfied at his logical assessment but for some reason, a he felt bit sad as well.

_I may be attracted to him and all, but that doesn't mean I think we should date! Imagine how strange that would be! Anyhow, I wouldn't want to mess things up just for a few quick snogs, no matter how good looking he is._ Instead of imagining the strangeness of it all though, Sirius couldn't help but picture several other things instead, mostly involving dark broom closets and empty classrooms.

_Just don't think about it. It's just one of those passing things that will go away eventually._ Sirius nodded to himself, deciding not to think too carefully about the situation if he could possibly help it. He couldn't quite stop all of the imagery from slipping through though. It was going to be a long night.


	7. Chapter 7

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius has been working on figuring out who the bet revolves around by considering the various people Remus speaks with each day.

Warnings: Cute Slash. Be Warned!

Disclaimer: I send all the money I make on fan fiction to J.K. Rowling since she owns it all.

ooooooooooooooo

Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 7

ooooooooooooooo

_Here he comes again_, James thought, amused.

"James! Buddy. How's it goin'?"

"What do you want, Black?" James tried to sound threatening but he couldn't keep the laughter out of his voice. Sirius wouldn't have been fooled anyway.

"Me? Want something?" Sirius tried to look shocked. "Of course I want something!" He grinned.

"So?" James prompted.

"Tell me who it is."

"I have no idea what you are talking about, Padfoot." James, of course, knew exactly what his friend was after.

"Aww, come on, Jamesie, best friend, godfather to all my future children. Just tell me who he likes. I won't breathe a word!" Sirius gestured dramatically, "This is killing me!"

"And why, exactly, is it killing you not to know who Moony is after?"

"It just is." Sirius crossed his arms defensively, looking frustrated.

"Don't worry, you will find out eventually."

"But it might be too late by then."

"Too late to win the bet?"

"Right. The bet." Sirius shifted uncomfortably.

"And before you ask, he hasn't done anything overt yet."

"How can you tell? I mean, can you see him doing anything different?"

"I probably wouldn't have noticed if I wasn't looking for it. But to tell you the truth, it doesn't seem to be all one-sided. I don't know if you are going to win this bet."

James noticed how Remus had been turning small, everyday human contact between friends into something a bit more. Remus would lean over Sirius and use his hand to steady himself, but leave the hand there a bit longer than he might have otherwise. Afterward, Remus would act as if nothing unusual had happened, and Sirius would just look a bit flustered. James had also noticed how often Sirius was the one to initiate contact with Remus rather than the other way around. Of course, now that he thought about it, Sirius had been acting that way for quite a while, certainly longer than the bet had been going on.

Sirius chewed on his lower lip, looking worried. "So Moony's subtlety thing is starting to work?"

"Well, it looks like that to me. But what do I know, right?"

"Are you sure you can't just tell me who it is," Sirius whined.

"Nope."

"But James, it could be anyone! I barely know half the people Remus talks to every day. How am I supposed to figure it out? I am no good with names and faces."

"Names and faces, nothing; you are no good with memory. Did you ever think that maybe you aren't supposed to figure it out at all?"

"But I need to know!"

James sighed. "Padfoot, don't give me that look. I will help with the list, but if I happen upon the name of Remus' crush, you won't be able to tell; I won't give you any hints."

"James, no helping Sirius with the bet."

"Remus! Err, hello. I didn't see you there."

"Apparently not." Remus grinned tiredly. The full moon was coming up and he was looking exhausted after a full day of school. "Trying to help Sirius, were you?"

"I promise to help him on his list without making it obvious who the bet concerns." James held up his hand as if solemnly swearing. Usually, of course, that meant he was up to no good.

Remus cocked his head to the side, reflecting on the idea. "Fine. But you had better not tell him…"

"You both know about my list?" Sirius was slightly horrified to have been caught with something so very, well, Remus-like, but he was grateful for the help. And grateful that they weren't teasing him about it. Yet. There were so many people he didn't know anything about who spoke with Remus all the time and it was quite frustrating.

"Padfoot, you are slightly obvious sometimes," Remus responded, gently. "Sorry to leave you two on your own, but I think a nap is in order. Have fun, and Prongs, you had better be careful as to what you tell him."

James just grinned.

"Okay, Sirius. Let's have a look, then." James waited impatiently as Sirius rummaged around in his bag, looking for the rumpled piece of paper he had been toting around.

Sirius wordlessly handed James the parchment.

"Hmm. Well, this is pretty lengthy, isn't it, Padfoot? I guess we should just start from the top and work our way through the list."

"Thanks, James," Sirius said, relaxing when his friend didn't start making fun of him for the expansive notes on his schoolmates.

"You don't have much on Richard Harlan. Let me see if I can think of any good information…" James ruffled his hair and scrunched up his nose while he reviewed his memories for useful clues. "I did hear that he has a girlfriend, but also that they were going to break up soon. Of course, that might just be a rumor."

Sirius faithfully added the information to his entry for Harlan, Richard.

"The Slytherins are more interested in appearances these days and Remus isn't a pureblood, remember? Every single Slytherin on your list has made anti-muggleborn comments recently. They are completely missing out on all the best looking partners." James eye's took on a faraway look as he contemplated the woman he considered to be the best looking in the school.

"James, stop fantasizing about Lily and keep helping. I added comments for the Slytherins. What else?"

"Who is next? Let's see. Christopher Brewster. I remember hearing that he was a good kisser… In fact, I think I heard that from you, last year."

Sirius scowled and didn't make a move to add that information to the boy's description.

James smirked.

"Okay, Chauncey Pangborn. He got into a fight with his ex in the middle of the Great Hall at the beginning of the year. Apparently he cheated on her with her best friend."

"Kirley McCormack has a huge fan club here. He likes to serenade them with whatever new song he has just written, and they eat it up. Does Moony like music?" James asked, innocently.

The scratching of quill on parchment almost covered up the sound of Sirius muttering under his breath.

"You are right about Derwent, he is dead boring, nothing else to say about him. As for Caradoc Dearborn, you really don't think he is good enough for Moony?"

"Too old, James. Have you heard anything else about him? Maybe he cheated on his ex or picked on a first year or something," Sirius added hopefully.

"Nah. He is too nice for that sort of thing. He and Davey Gudgeon tied for the highest score in Charms last year though."

"Oh." Sirius looked disappointed.

"And hey! What is this about my hair? My hair is great! I can't believe you compared it to Gudgeon's. You are such a wanker."

"I have got to be truthful or the list won't work," Sirius replied pompously.

"Then why didn't you add the bit about Christopher being a good kisser?"

"Shut up, James."

Sirius continued, trying to change the subject. "What about Bertram Aubrey? I heard some really bad comments about him from the girls in Divination. They weren't very specific though."

"Yup, Aubrey is really an ass. Remember the time last year he blindsided you with that bludger after the whistle blew? You think he is after Remus?"

"That was him? Yeah, I think he is after Moony. Well, maybe. Anyhow, about that new spell we were discussing yesterday… I was actually thinking of trying it out on him, wanna help?" Sirius grinned at James.

"Sure thing!"

ooooooooooooooo

James peered around the corner of the hallway carefully, checking his watch. "We have another 5 minutes before classes let out and Aubrey comes this way."

"Did the book say how much bigger his head would actually get?"

"Nah, it just said, _A humorous spell to target those with large egos. This incantation is used to reveal the inner nature of a wizard or witch: his or her head will swell to an unnatural size, showing the world how big-headed they are_. Or something like that."

"Excellent." Sirius drew out the syllables and rubbed his hands together in glee, mimicking a stereotypical villain.

"You are really excited about this hex, Padfoot. Why are you so annoyed at Aubrey again," James asked, pretending innocence. His best friend was so amusing to play with.

"_We_ are annoyed at Aubrey because he is a total prat and not nearly good enough for Moony."

"I knew there must be a reason. So, Sirius, you're awfully protective of Remus. You really think he wouldn't be able to deal with a git like Aubrey?" James smiled to himself at the thought of baiting Sirius.

"Remus thinks the best of everyone. In fact, I saw him being nice to Snivellus the other day." Suddenly, Sirius turned to James, and with a look of completely panic and terror, grabbed onto his robe and shook him. "It isn't Snape, is it? Oh, Merlin!"

"No! I told Moony I wouldn't help you, but gods! No. Not Snape." James shuddered at the thought.

"Though it would have been funny to see your expression if I had pretended it was…"

"James! Even you aren't that evil."

James grinned, imagining the drama that would be caused by Remus and Snape dating. "Anyhow, even if Remus was interested," James paused, noticing the look on his friend's face, "which he isn't… Snape has hated Remus ever since the Willow incident. I doubt it would ever work. No baby Lupin-Snapes will be running around with werewolfy eyes and greasy hair."

Sirius laughed but James noticed that he was also looking a bit shamefaced. Perhaps it was time to change the subject. He had gotten enough amusement out of the situation for the moment and goodness knows, there was always more to be had.

"So you realize that if Aubrey sees us, we will get a detention, right? He _is_ a prefect."

"Since when are you concerned with getting detention, Prongs?"

"Good point! Ready? It looks like classes are starting to let out…"

ooooooooooooooo

"Another detention, Sirius? James? Why is it that your names are always coming up at the prefect meetings?" Remus looked at his two friends, amused.

"Aubrey deserved it." Sirius crossed his arms defensively.

"Far be it from me to suggest you stop trying to beat last year's record for most detentions in school history. I am sure you have come to enjoy polishing trophies and scrubbing out storage closets."

"Oh, Moony. You are missing out on all the fun since you never get detention with us."

"It is called not getting caught, Padfoot." Remus flashed an uncommonly devilish grin and Sirius' stomach flip flopped.

"More of that subtlety stuff," Sirius replied skeptically, trying to cover up the butterflies in his stomach.

"Perhaps."

"I just don't get how the whole thing is supposed to work," Sirius huffed, frustrated. "I mean using subtlety to get a boyfriend, not using it to avoid detention. That part I understand."

"It is all about getting someone to see you in a whole new light."

Sirius nodded, encouraging Remus to continue.

"For instance, some people might only see me as a studious, quiet prefect. Now, you and I know differently." He grinned at Sirius who smiled back, delighted to be on the 'in' when it came to knowing Remus and his connection to the chaos caused by the Marauders.

Remus continued. "Not many people know about the pranks I help with, and only the trusted few know exactly how dangerous I can be once a month. I would like to keep the situation like that."

"Once in a while, though, I want someone to see me in a different light than they did before. That is what I am doing here. Sometimes it just takes a few words here and there, perhaps an action that might seem innocent, but is actually quite purposeful… It is the subconscious response that is important. The person eventually changes their view of me and starts noticing me in a whole different way. Does that make any sense?"

"Yes, it really does make sense actually. Like when I first found out you dated, I thought of you differently."

"Good example, Sirius." Remus wore an odd sort of expression, making Sirius wonder what he was thinking.

"But how can I tell when you are doing that on purpose and to the guy you like?"

Remus just laughed and wouldn't answer.


	8. Chapter 8

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius has realized he is attracted to Remus and isn't so sure what to do about it.

Warnings: Slashy, silly and sappy.

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Harry Potter, but my birthday is coming up, so you never know…

Thanks: To Oony and Sibbie. They are heaven sent! In fact, if they were perfume, they would be heaven scented. Har, har.

ooooooooooooooo

Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 8

ooooooooooooooo

"Did you review the materials for class today, Sirius? A friend from Hufflepuff told me the plants we will be working with are much more dangerous than they sound."

"When do I ever review? Don't worry, it will be fine." Sirius walked a few more steps and then added, "Which friend?"

Remus chuckled. "You never give up, do you?"

As a reply, Sirius smirked and wiggled his eyebrows. "So, Moony, how is it going with the bet? You think the guy likes you yet?"

"Well, I think he's interested, yes. He has yet to ask me out, though."

"If he likes you, why hasn't he asked you on a date?" Sirius asked logically.

"Well, perhaps he doesn't want a relationship. I have considered that he might not wish to get tied down to someone, and I can only hope I can change his mind about that, if that's the case." 

"Oh, Remus. Don't look sad. If anyone could make someone want to settle down, I'm sure it'd be you." Sirius slung a comforting arm around his friend.

"Thanks, Sirius. I appreciate it. I'm not after him just for a fling. I want more than that; I want a real relationship. Something that lasts."

"Well, I'm sure you will find someone perfect for you, even when it takes more than a month and I win the bet." Sirius grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

Remus smiled back, secretly hoping that Sirius was correct on the first count and incorrect on the second.

"Perhaps I'll need to step things up a notch and try to make him see what he is missing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you were just reminding me that he hasn't asked me out yet; perhaps I need to work a little bit harder on making him interested."

"Hey! You are sticking to subtle methods though, right, Moony?"

"Of course, Padfoot. It isn't like I will grab him, drag him off into a deserted classroom, push him against the wall, and snog him senseless… That won't happen until after we are dating." Remus had a peculiar smile on his face and his eyes were a bit unfocused, as if he were picturing the scene in his head. Merlin knew Sirius was picturing it in his own head!

"Right. So no doing that, then." The confident and amused voice Sirius meant to have exit his mouth didn't quite happen as planned. In fact, Sirius thought he sounded a bit squeaky and perhaps even slightly breathless. He hoped Remus hadn't noticed.

"And anyhow," Sirius continued, thankfully sounding more normal, "you wouldn't want your Prefect status challenged by getting caught snogging in classrooms."

"Oh, I never get caught. I am a master of locking and imperturbable spells." Remus grinned. Sirius' eyes widened.

Finally blinking again after what must have been a noticeably awkward time frame, Sirius managed to ask, "Can you teach me then?"

Remus laughed. "Some day, perhaps."

As they were about to arrive in the greenhouse for herbology class, Remus pulled Sirius to the side.

"Hey, Padfoot?"

"Yeah, Moony?"

"Thanks for cheering me up."

"Any time."

ooooooooooooooo

Remus sat beside his roommate who was prone on a hospital bed, a few bandages showing starkly white against his skin. The black haired boy had just started to stir. Grey eyes opened and blinked a few times before finding their focus.

"Good morning, sleepy head. Madame Pomfrey wanted you to drink this potion when you woke up. It'll probably knock you out again fairly quickly, but you will be much better when you wake up tomorrow."

"Do I have to? And is it really morning?" Sirius groaned and tried to roll away from the sunlight that poured through the window and assaulted this upturned face.

"Yes, indeed you do, and no it isn't. You were only unconscious for a short time. But remember that a Hogsmeade weekend is coming up. You don't want to be stuck in here, correct? So drink up."

Sirius made a face but mutely took the bottle he was offered, pouring it down his throat with a grimace.

"So how are you feeling?" Remus asked, taking the empty bottle absently from Sirius' hands and setting it on the night table. Their fingers brushed and Sirius' eyes lingered momentarily on the spot where his skin and Remus' had met.

"Violated."

"It was just a plant for goodness sakes."

"It made eyes at me while it was groping." 

"Plants don't have eyes. And it wasn't groping you, it was trying to kill you."

"That's what they all say."

Remus blinked. "Right, okay. Maybe we should have Madame Pomfrey check for hallucinogenic plant excretions." 

"Excretions? Are you saying it may have shat on me?"

"Padfoot! I'm just going to go get the nurse now." Remus was trying to pry his hand out of the death grip Sirius had put it in.

"Don't go! What if it comes back?"

"Comes back? Sirius, before you passed out, you chopped it up into little pieces and then set it on fire, don't you remember?" 

"You never know," he replied, darkly.

"I understand that you don't like Herbology, but honestly."

"It isn't my fault, it is theirs. They don't like me."

"They?"

"The plants. They're all out to get me. They're everywhere, Moony. Can't you stay with me until I fall asleep?" Sirius looked up at him with the sad puppy dog eyes that always won even the toughest of verbal matches.

Remus smiled at him gently and settled back down on the chair next to the bed. "Why didn't you just ask? Of course I will stay."

ooooooooooooooo

Sirius had woken up alone in the hospital wing. He wished Remus had been there, but he knew from the pre-dawn light shining through the window that it was too early in the morning for anyone else to be out and about. Sighing, he lay there in the deserted room, staring at the ceiling, and thought about the situation in which he managed to find himself.

Now that Sirius had admitted his attraction to his werewolf friend, it seemed like every thing the other boy did had on a new light, a whole new side that was exciting and exhilarating to him. When Remus put a hand on Sirius' knee for balance while leaning down to get a book, suddenly his heart sped up. When Remus leaned over his shoulder to see where Sirius was pointing out a homework question, Sirius got shivers from the breath on his neck. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and he was sure it had all happened before, but suddenly, he was _aware_ of it.

Remus was driving him crazy without doing a thing! The worst part was that his friend was after someone else, and Sirius had practically pushed Remus into chasing this other person down.

If Remus weren't his friend, he would have just cornered him and snogged his socks off. At least until Sirius' interest waned.

If only Remus weren't a friend… but of course that would be terrible, in so many ways. Sirius almost wished he was the type of person who wanted to settle down and have a committed relationship, just for Moony.

He sighed, frustrated, and turned over, trying to find a more comfortable spot.

ooooooooooooooo

"There you are, Sirius," said Remus, offering up a bar of Honeyduke's chocolate.

Three of the four Marauders were clustered around the injured fourth member, cheering him up between classes.

"But Remus, that's your last bit of chocolate!"

"You need it more than I do, Sirius. Consider it a down payment for all those times you brought me chocolate during my monthly stays here."

"How about we split it, Moony?"

A smile lit up Remus' face. "That sounds wonderful, Padfoot."

"I'm hungry too," whined Peter.

"Why don't you go get us all something to eat from the kitchens then, Pete? Maybe James can go with you to help you carry everything." Remus turned with a bright smile to James, who seemed to be trying not to laugh.

"I am sure Pete can manage on his own, Moony. I'll just stay here and keep you and Sirius company. You two always manage to make things interesting…" James wiggled his eyebrows at Remus.

"Suit yourself." Remus gave James a good natured huff of indignation, while Sirius just looked a bit confused over the whole exchange, wondering if he had missed something important. "Anyhow, Peter, thank you for offering to get us all some food, and Sirius, thank you for offering to share the chocolate with me."

Peter, who was wondering when he had offered to do anything, just shrugged, waved, and left for the kitchens.

"I love the dark chocolate bars with the flavored filling the best."

Sirius' eyes widened as he watched his roommate's attention focus back on the chocolate bar and the gaze turn to one of lustful anticipation. He wished that look was for him instead of the chocolate. In fact, he wished he _was_ the chocolate.

Remus broke the chocolate bar in half, catching a drop of the thick red filling on his finger as it started to fall from the broken edge of the candy bar. Eyes half closed in delight, Remus put the tip of his finger in his mouth.

"Raspberry is the best flavor, don't you think?"

Nodding dumbly, Sirius wondered what it could be like to have his own finger sucked on by Remus, or if his friend tasted more like raspberry than chocolate or…

"I adore how this brand of chocolate just melts on your tongue." Remus' intense gaze moved from the chocolate to Sirius who suddenly found it difficult to breathe. He somehow managed to take his half of the candy without dropping it. Hoping that his completely distracted state wasn't as obvious as he thought it might be, Sirius tried to focus on unwrapping his candy bar.

Once Remus started eating the chocolate itself though, Sirius was completely lost. He wished he could blame it on the potions that he had shoved down his throat but he knew better.

When a small moan escaped his roommate's throat, Sirius had to change position in the bed, hoping to hide any of the most obvious signs of his interest.

Remus' eyes settled on Sirius as he swallowed the last bit of chocolate. The intense look that Sirius had been admiring earlier was again focused on him. "Don't you want any, Sirius?"

He knew if he tried to say anything, it would end up as gibberish, so he stuffed his half of the candy in his mouth all at once.

"Nice, Pads," Remus said, grinning. "Do I have any chocolate on me?" he asked, running a finger along the corner of his mouth as if trying to wipe away a nonexistent smudge.

Sirius nodded again, still silenced by the chocolate. Why he was agreeing with Remus when the boy had been as scrupulously neat as usual, he was not certain, but for some reason, Remus always made him want to be agreeable.

"Oops. I just love chocolate," Remus said, abashed and slightly apologetic.

He proceeded to slowly lick his lips, managing not to smile as Sirius watched the pink tongue glide over the curve of the delicious looking mouth. "Better?"

Before Sirius could pull his attention from Remus' mouth long enough to answer, James coughed loudly, reminding the other boys of his presence.

"Oh, Prongs. When did you get here?" Remus teased.

"Ha, ha. You are always forgetting about me, Moony."

"I'm just focused on making sure Sirius gets well," he replied with a grin. "So, Padfoot, did the sugar make you feel better?"

"Of course, Moony," he replied, regaining some equilibrium after James' interruption. "But I owe you. I will buy you some nice Honeyduke's this weekend."

"How thoughtful of you to help feed my addiction. So you will be coming to Hogsmeade with me, then?"

"I wouldn't miss it. Though if the nurse hasn't kicked me out of here by then, please come and break me out." Sirius put both hands together pleadingly.

"No worries, Padfoot," James interjected confidently. "We will have an emergency exit strategy in no time if she tries to keep you. Though why anyone would want to keep you…"

"Hmph. At least Moony loves me. Maybe because I understand about his addiction problem. Chocolate is a harsh mistress."

Remus laughed, agreeing completely on all counts.

"We should go find Peter before class starts," interrupted James. "He probably forgot what he was going to do and is still in the kitchens eating something atrocious."

"Perhaps fried squid this time."

"With butternut sauce and blueberry jam topping."

They all shuddered.

"Sirius, we will see you later today. Mme. Pomfrey told me earlier that you would probably be able to leave sometime in the early afternoon, so perhaps you will even make it to the last class of the day."

"Class," Sirius scoffed dismissively. "When has going to class ever done anyone any good? Plus, I have a reason to miss it. Why waste a good quality excuse?"

"I don't know why I even mentioned it." Remus snickered. "See you soon, Pads."

James and Remus both waved as they left the hospital wing.

After the doors shut, James rounded on Moony, pointing a finger accusingly and at the same time, laughing.

"Dang, Moony! You are so evil! After that display, _I_ almost asked you for a date."

Remus favored James with a wink. "I am sure you would have. If I were a girl. With red hair. Whose name was Lily..."

"Speaking of not getting a date, going to Hogsmeade for chocolate doesn't count as him asking you out. Almost, though."

There was much eye rolling and grinning as the two went to find their friend Peter.


	9. Chapter 9

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle, and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius is realizing he wants to be with Remus and is having a difficult time dealing with the situation.

Warnings: Slash. Boys. Together. Yup.

Disclaimer: I claim nothing. Not it!

Notes: I am starting a new story as this one winds down. Eventually SBRL, so you might like it. Be on the lookout for "The Worst Year Yet."

Thanks: To my Betas. Does that make me the Alpha? Maybe the Omega instead. Rry, Oony, and Sibbie, you know you rock, right?

ooooooooooooooo

Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 9

ooooooooooooooo

"What do you think of these pants, Sirius?" Remus came out of the bathroom, hair still damp from a shower, wearing a pair of pants Sirius had never seen before. And no shirt.

_Oh my,_ Sirius thought. Remus usually changed behind the bed curtains or in the bathroom.

Sirius squirmed uncomfortably. "Why are you asking me?"

"Because you are sitting there and everyone else is gone." Remus smiled. "You don't think they are too tight, are they?" He twisted around in front of the mirror, trying to see himself from the back.

"Why do you care so much about what you look like today, Remus?" Sirius had a hard time taking his eyes from his friend's backside. Yes, the pants were a bit too tight. He decided not to say anything though, for some strange reason.

"I might see him in Hogsmeade. I thought I should look nice. Now if I can just figure out what shirt to wear." Remus walked over to his trunk, bending over to search through it for a top.

Sirius swallowed heavily at the view. _Good lord, when did Remus get so good looking? And why couldn't he just find a shirt and stand up. And put more clothes on, the faster the better. All that bare skin is not good for me_.

After what seemed like ages, Remus stood up, two shirts in his hands. "Green or blue?"

"Umm…" Sirius couldn't stop staring. The damp sheen on Remus' skin from the shower was distracting.

Remus slipped on the green one, starting to button it up.

"What do you think about the green?"

Sirius didn't respond.

"Sirius, are you okay? Your eyes look a bit glazed." Remus walked up to his friend, shirt only halfway fastened, and felt his forehead. "You feel a bit hot. Do you want me to take you back to the infirmary?"

"No, I'm all right." Sirius finally replied.

_At least I will be if you and your half open shirt give me a bit of breathing room_, he thought to himself.

"Are you sure," Remus asked, holding the other boy's face still with his hands and leaning in quite closely to peer worriedly into his classmate's eyes.

_Too close_, Sirius thought, staring into large amber eyes. The heat of Remus' hands was burning him, or perhaps it was his own face blushing.

"I'm good, Remus," he choked out. "Nice clothes are fine." Merlin, now he couldn't even speak properly. He had to get out of here.

"Meet you downstairs soon. I have to, uhh…" His eyes flitted around the room as he looked for an excuse to leave. "Bathroom." Sirius jumped up off his bed and ran into the bathroom, slamming the door.

Remus grinned broadly. Yes, his plan seemed to be going quite well.

Life was good.

ooooooooooooooo

Pacing the common room, Sirius looked for something to take his mind off his earlier encounter with Remus. Waiting for his friends was not an unusual occurrence, but that didn't mean he was good at it. Patience was not his virtue.

Finally ending his restless circles of the common room, Sirius settled down to watch James sidle up to Lily, trying to get her attention. Sirius didn't notice the same scene playing out right next to him. A tall brown haired girl tentatively approached him, a hopeful look in her eyes.

"Umm. Hello, Sirius. Are you free to go to Hogsmeade with me today maybe?"

"Sorry, already going with Remus," Sirius replied, distracted by the familiar yet always entertaining sight of James trying to convince Lily to join him in town.

He wasn't listening as one of the other girls turned to the brunette and whispered, "See? I told you they were together."

"James, are you done making a fool of yourself yet? I really want to get to town. The carriages leave soon."

"Hold your hippogriffs, Sirius. We can't leave before everyone else anyhow so why are you in such a hurry?" James didn't seem to be too terribly bothered that Lily had turned him down, once again.

Sirius just huffed and resumed his circular mapping of the Gryffindor common room.

"Padfoot, you're making me dizzy." A familiar voice floated down the stairs.

"Moony! Umm, hi. How are you today?" Sirius stared as Remus took his time making his way down the stairs.

"Fine, thank you," replied Remus in a serious tone. "Though it has been a difficult twenty minutes since I last saw you, I seem to have made it through without incident."

"Ha, ha," said Sirius, recovering a bit. "If I didn't check up on you all the time, who knows what kinds of trouble you would get yourself into!"

"Right, because I am always getting into trouble. Thankfully you keep me on the straight and narrow."

Sirius refrained from making any inappropriate 'straight' jokes, but couldn't help but get flustered again at the thoughts racing through his head. "Narrow just isn't your thing," he said, making absolutely no sense.

"Sirius," Remus said with a strange look on his face, "You never fail to confuse."

"Amuse. The word is amuse. I never fail to amuse, Moony."

"That too. You never fail to amuse Moony." Remus grinned.

ooooooooooooooo

Sporting a beaming smile, Remus walked out of Honeydukes carrying a large bag filled with chocolate. Sirius had kept his word and restocked his roommate's supply. Behind him, Sirius exited the store, trying not to stare at the tight pants he had ended up recommending.

"Where to now, Sirius?"

"Wherever you like, Moony."

"Three Broomsticks? Butterbeer?"

"Sounds good. A nice cold Butterbeer sounds perfect right about now. Exactly what I want in life." Sirius grinned.

"That is what I want, Sirius." Remus pointed to two of their fellow students, Frank and Alice, who were walking up ahead, holding hands.

"What do you mean?"

"I want someone I can have fun with of course, but also someone who will occasionally hold my hand or wake me up early to watch the sunrise." Remus shrugged. "That sort of thing is probably a lot to expect from someone…"

"So you want someone to be all cute with? Like them?" Sirius gestured toward the window of the tea shop they were passing, filled with awkward looking couples. He looked slightly horrified.

"I'm not a girl, Sirius, nor do I have such appalling taste. I don't need a pink flowered teacup at Madam Puddifoot's, bad poetry, or serenading. What I do need is to be able to enjoy my whole day with the same individual. I need a person to joke with, to be quiet with, to kiss under the stars…"

"Well, kissing under the stars sounds much better than going to Madam Puddifoot's. That place is just evil."

Remus smiled. "I'll just take your word for it then, rather than trying it out for myself."

"I hope you're talking about the tea shop and not the kissing part. The second one, you should try out."

"I will if he ever asks me, Sirius." Remus paused thoughtfully. "What if he doesn't want this sort of thing though? Do you think I am too picky? Too demanding?"

"Moony, I'm sure your mystery man will be able to live up to your expectations. Otherwise, you wouldn't have picked him, right?"

"Perhaps. I worry though."

"If he doesn't want that, he isn't worth it. You deserve the best, Moony."

"Thanks, Padfoot."

"So, no serenading, eh? Does this mean the bet isn't about Kirley McCormack?"

Remus laughed but didn't answer.

ooooooooooooooo

"Who are you here with today?" Rosmerta was filling the first of two steins of cold butterbeer for Sirius.

"Remus." He shot a smile across the tavern at his friend who smiled lazily back, basking in the sunshine pouring in through the window while waiting for Sirius to return with the drinks.

"Oh, really? Remus then?"

"Well, it isn't like an official date or anything," Sirius said, frowning slightly.

"Why not?"

Sirius momentarily wondered why she didn't seem at all surprised that he was with Remus. Perhaps she knew him better than he thought. Though his friends teased him for flirting with her, Sirius just thought Rosmerta was amazingly easy to talk to. He always ended up telling her everything about his love life and even asked her advice when the occasion demanded it.

"I guess because he likes someone else."

"When has that ever stopped you?"

"Plus, he wants a real relationship. You know, long term."

"Sirius, you two have been friends since first year. If that doesn't count as long term, I don't know what does. That isn't the real reason, is it?"

Sirius shuffled his feet. "What if he isn't interested?"

Rosmerta threw her head back and laughed. "I never thought I would see the day when Sirius Black would be too nervous to ask someone on a date."

He huffed haughtily.

She raised an eyebrow and waited.

"It's just that, this time, it's important," he explained quietly, finally admitting his reasoning.

"I'm sure it will be fine. Though, you had better get to it before someone else does."

Sirius turned to see attractive competition in the form of Christopher Brewster leaning over the wall of their booth to talk to Remus.

"Thanks, Rosie!" Sirius grabbed the drinks and hurried back to the table, mumbling under his breath, "Stupid Brewster better stay away from my Moony."

Rosmerta smiled to herself. _Ah, to be young and in love_.

Sirius was busy scowling at the interloper as Remus gestured with his hands, obviously in the middle of some long explanation.

_Then again, I seem to recall young love being awfully stressful._

ooooooooooooooo

On the way home, Remus turned to Sirius. "Hey, Padfoot? Thanks for the advice today, you know, on what to wear."

"Err, you're welcome."

"I am pretty certain I caught him checking me out."

"Oh," Sirius replied, weakly.

"I don't think I will need the whole month after all." Remus smiled mysteriously, gave his roommate a wink, and continued on to the castle, humming a jaunty tune.


	10. Chapter 10

Summary: Sirius teases Remus about dating and being too subtle, and a bet is born. Currently, Sirius is wondering if he can get Remus to date him instead of the subject of the bet. Little does he know…

Warnings: Two boys kissing. Each other. Yes, that is more of a promise than a warning.

Disclaimer: I have been thinking about legally changing my name to J.K. Rowling. But it hasn't happened yet.

Notes: Finally done with this – now I can focus on the next longish one: "The Worst Year Yet."

Thank you: Betas of Doom!

ooooooooooooooo

Subtlety, Thy Name is Sirius Black

by Rekahneko

Chapter 10

ooooooooooooooo

"Good morning, sleepy head." Sirius opened his eyes to a blurry vision of Remus, looking down at him with an amused expression. "Sunday brunch is almost over so you need to hurry up if you want to catch some waffles."

Sirius did his best to courteously thank his roommate for the wake up call, while explaining that he hadn't gotten as much sleep the night before as his body had needed. What came out of his mouth, though, was somewhere between a grunt and groan.

He had dreamt about Remus the previous night, and while it was a lovely dream, when he woke up in the middle of it, he hadn't been able to go back to sleep.

Sirius had finally decided that, no matter how much Remus liked the guy he was after, Sirius would be better for him. Even though he felt a tiny bit of guilt about the whole thing, he still decided to try and get Remus for himself rather than let him date the other fellow. Now, the only problem was trying to get his Gryffindor courage up to confront the situation.

"Moony?"

"Yeah, Padfoot?"

"Umm," Sirius was working on what exactly to say when James walked up.

"Hey guys, what's going on this morning?"

"Nothing," Sirius gave Remus a sideways glance.

"Sirius was just going to ask me a question, weren't you?"

Remus and James shared a grin while Sirius looked a bit confused. He searched his mind quickly for a question he could ask with both of them in the room.

"I was just going to ask about," he paused, hoping for inspiration, "umm, about the bet."

"Ah yes, our delightful bet. I think things are going fairly well, don't you, James?"

"I dunno, Remus," replied James with a small laugh. "We will see. And no, I won't tell you who it is, Pads."

Whining, Sirius made a face, thoroughly frustrated that James still wouldn't let him in on the secret.

"I'm sure he won't regret dating you though, Moony, assuming he finally asks."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Prongs. No one has had any complaints so far…"

Sirius felt his knees go weak as Remus shot him a flirtatious smile. It wasn't fair that this was happening! He should be the one on the other end of that smile all the time, not some moronic dunderhead who wouldn't appreciate it properly.

"Can't you just tell me a little more about him? Just one more clue?"

Remus thought for a moment. "I consider him a friend. It will be great to date a friend for once instead of going for someone like Christopher, just because of their looks."

"Ha! So it isn't Christopher!"

"You got me, Pads. No, it isn't." Remus smiled. "Come on, we really do need to get some brunch."

ooooooooooooooo

"Hey, Moony. Maybe we should go upstairs and study. It is getting noisy down here."

Remus looked up at Sirius in surprise. Not only was he studying on a Sunday afternoon, but he wanted to get away from the distractions of the common room? Sirius lived for distractions. Obviously, there was something more going on here.

_Alone, in the dorm room, just the two of us. I wonder if he will get around to asking that question he keeps trying to bring up, _Remus thought. "Of course, Sirius. That sounds like a wonderful idea."

Sirius gleefully gathered his books together and practically bounced up the stairs, eager to be alone with Remus.

His roommate followed more placidly, appreciating the view ahead of him along the way.

Sirius threw his bag on the ground and threw himself on his bed. He grimaced at the book he pulled out to read. "I hate History of Magic."

Remus had methodically arranged himself in his own space, books and parchment in neat piles around him. "You realize you have your Charms book out, right?"

Sighing dramatically, "That too. Remind me again why we have to do homework? How about we play some Exploding Snap instead?"

"I thought we were coming up here to work, Padfoot."

Sirius grumbled but obediently opened his book and stared blankly at it for a while.

"Do you think I am good looking, Remus?" Sirius watched Remus out of the corner of his eye.

"Sure, Sirius. All the girls seem to enjoy looking at you."

Sirius huffed, frustrated, while Remus hid a smile.

After pretending to focus a bit longer on his textbook, Sirius, flopped over, facing Remus' bed.

"You shouldn't date him," Sirius suddenly spit out.

Remus blinked and slowly turned to face his friend. "I assume you are referring to the object of our bet."

When Sirius nodded, Remus put down his textbook and carefully asked, "Why not?"

"I just don't think this guy is good enough for you."

"Sirius, you don't even know who it is."

"Still. He won't be good enough," Sirius stated stubbornly, adding, "You shouldn't date him, whoever he is."

"Why do you feel so strongly about me dating someone when you don't even know who it could be? Padfoot, you are quite confusing. Don't you want me to have a boyfriend? Isn't that what you were teasing me about when we started this bet?"

"I was teasing you about not having a girlfriend, but yeah, you're right. I do want you to have a boyfriend."

Remus seemed like he had no idea where the conversation was heading. "So you want me to have a boyfriend, but you don't want me to date anyone?"

"Just not the person you are thinking of dating."

"So if I went back to Christopher…"

"No! Not him either. Definitely not him."

"Then whom should I date?" Remus peered at Sirius innocently, looking confused.

"Well, I know what you want in a guy since we have talked about it and everything. I mean, you should date someone who knows you well. And someone who is nice. And you said you needed someone funny, right?"

"True, I did say all of those things." Remus nodded gravely.

"So," Sirius paused, wondering why he was so nervous. "What about me?"

"What do you mean?" Remus had to smother another grin. He was not going to make this easier on Sirius, it was just too much fun.

"I mean date me instead of your mystery guy!"

"Date you? Are you sure?"

"Absolutely! Aren't I nice? And funny? I would even wake up early with you, just to watch the sunrise. Anyhow, those other guys are just not good enough."

"How do I know you aren't just saying this to win the bet, Sirius?" Remus looked at him suspiciously.

"I'm not, really!"

"Well, I don't know," Remus bit his lip, clearly unsure. "You have done some pretty tricky things before to try and win bets." Sirius had the grace to look guilty.

"Listen, I'll even forfeit the bet and everything. What will make you believe me, Remus?" Sirius sounded just a tiny bit desperate. He just couldn't let Remus date this other guy instead of him.

Remus thought for a moment. "If you tell James exactly why the bet is off, I suppose I would believe you."

Sirius nodded eagerly. He would be glad to drop the stupid bet in return for Remus' trust. _And for a chance to kiss him_, a little voice at the back of his mind added. Of course, telling his best friend that he wanted to date their roommate was a bit nerve wracking, now that he thought about it.

Leaning over the balcony just outside the door, Remus called down to the common room. "James, can you spare a moment and come up to the dorm?"

_Too late to back out now_, Sirius thought. He got up off the bed and paced back and forth as the other Marauder made his way upstairs.

James entered the dorm room, curiosity written all over his face. Literally. Lily had gotten angry at him earlier in the day for trying to steal her diary, and she had cursed him so that the word 'curiosity' was written on his forehead along with a few other words such as 'git' and 'wanker.' Remus noticed that her grammar was a bit off, but decided not to mention it. An angry Lily was a frightening Lily.

"Sirius has something to tell you. Go on, Sirius."

Sirius looked at Remus for a moment. "Well, I am forfeiting the bet, James." James raised his eyebrows and Remus waited for him to continue. This was harder than he thought it might be.

"Well, see, I decided that instead of Moony dating this bloke he has been after, that, well…" He looked at Remus pleadingly.

"Sirius…" Remus had his hands on his hips. He wasn't backing down; Sirius was going to have to tell James.

"Well, I just thought that Moony should date me instead."

Remus beamed widely and James laughed, not at all disturbed by the news, making Sirius feel much better.

What really made him feel better though, was Remus, who had pushed him against the wall and was currently kissing him senseless. All coherent thoughts fled in the wake of the overwhelming sensations Remus seemed to be pulling from him.

James cleared his throat. "You two know I am still in the room, right?" Shrugging, he wandered over to his trunk and began to rummage around when there was no response to his question.

Sirius didn't even notice, focused as he was on the feeling of Remus' lips, and tongue, and, oh gods, why hadn't they done this long ago?

Pulling away slightly, Remus wore a rarely seen Cheshire cat grin.

"Remus," Sirius breathed, dazed. "Wow." It had been an amazing kiss, and he liked to think he had participated in quite enough to have a good understanding of the subject.

James tossed a blue money pouch to Remus, who caught it easily. "There you go, Moony. Glad you finally got your man. Congratulations on winning the bet!"

Sirius looked back and forth between Remus and James, confused. Bet? Money? Suddenly, the pieces slipped into place and he gaped at Remus, finally realizing who the bet had targeted all this time. Remus smiled and pressed another kiss to the unresisting and slightly slack-jawed mouth in front of him.

"Was I subtle enough for you, Sirius?"

"But you… I'm… You never… Remus!" he said, finally.

"Yes Sirius?" Remus replied, leaning against Sirius, one hand toying with a strand of silky black hair.

"You tricked me!"

"Hmm," the werewolf replied absently, fingers trailing along the smooth neck.

"You had me thinking you were after someone else, the whole time!"

Remus smiled a bit and began playing with the top button of the boy's shirt, breath hot against Sirius' skin.

"Stop distracting me. I am trying to be mad at you," Sirius said, doing his best to sound at least a little annoyed rather than breathless.

"Really?" Remus whispered, lips dancing along the curve of Sirius' ear.

"Mad," agreed Sirius, eyes half closed in pleasure.

"Are you?" asked Remus, continuing to distract Sirius by letting his fingers slide up and down the smooth fabric of the shirt.

"Am I what?" Sirius replied, completely forgetting what they had been talking about.

"Nothing," Remus grinned. "You want me to demonstrate those locking and imperturbable spells now? I think I'd like some uninterrupted time with my new boyfriend."

"Do I need to take notes?"

Shooing a laughing James out of the room, Remus fired a few spells at the dormitory door. Still grinning, Remus pulled Sirius closer, ready to show him exactly why his mystery man wouldn't regret dating him.

This time, it was Sirius who pulled away first. "I'm glad it was me," he whispered.

"No one else could ever measure up to you, Sirius."

"Not even Christopher?"

"Especially not Christopher."

After that, there were no more words for quite a while.

oooooooooo The End oooooooooo


End file.
